1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a RFID label application method for applying a label to an article, a RFID label application device thereof and a RFID label, wherein the label is fixed with a RFID tag having an IC chip therein for storing various information.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a recent widely used technology as described in FIG. 15, an IC (integrated circuit) chip Ta for storing various information and a RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tag T comprising a communication antenna Tb connected to the IC chip Ta are together fixed inside a label L which may be applied to various articles, to provide wireless communication with a reader, non-contact automatic identification by means of the RFID tag T.
FIG. 15 hereof shows a label L which is fixed with a RFID tag T. The label L comprises an outer display layer U and an inner adhesive layer B, at the back of the display layer U. The adhesive layer is fixed on the RFID tag T. The display layer U and the adhesive layer B are serially tacked on a backing paper D.
The RFID tag T is conventionally configured with an IC chip Ta and a communication antenna Tb and is protected by a film layer J which covers the whole.
A label application device applies the label L, to which the RFID tag T is fixed, to an article. A conventional label application device, for example, proposed previously by the present applicant/assignee hereof, is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-104521. This label application device conveys a label L, which is tacked on a backing paper D, and draws the label L at a predetermined attachment point by means of a attachment plate after the label L is peeled from the backing paper D and the device applies the label L, which is then drawn by the attachment plate, to an article at a predetermined application point on the article.
A conventional label L fixed with the RFID tag, capable of maintaining a regular communication range, is also provided as described in FIG. 16. For example, the label L thereof comprises three portions 10, 11 and 12 which are foldable. The portion 10 is provided with an IC chip Ta and a communication antenna Tb. The portion 11 and 12 are provided with the communication antenna Tb respectively. The label, which the foldable portion 10, 11 and 12 are faced to each surface of an article at a corner thereof, is applied to the article. The communication in the tri-direction is made thereby. (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-212348)
Incidentally, in a UHF RFID tag T in the conventional label L, if the material or content of an article to which the label L is applied disturbs the electromagnetic wave, in other words, if the material or content contains metal, water or the like, although depending on the frequency, the problem was that the electromagnetic wave is absorbed into the article due to the influence of the metal or liquid such as water in the article, or that a reader/writer cannot read or write the information of the IC chip Ta due to a disturbance in the electromagnetic wave caused by diffuse reflection.
For the solution to this problem, as described in FIG. 17, there has been known a label L, for example, which is provided with hollow tubes 20 for serving a gap between the label L and the article W and is applied to an article W, and the influence coming from the article W, to which the label L is applied, can be minimized by leaving space between the RFID tag T and the article W. (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1999-240523)    Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-104521    Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-212348    Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1999-240523
However, the label L, disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1999-240523, is applied to an article W through the intermediary of the hollow tubes 20, the problem was that the hollow tubes 20 were needed.
According to Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1999-240523, in a method for fixing the label L on an article, the hollow tubes 20 are fixed on the article by means of an adhesive or a cellophane tape after the label L is applied onto the hollow tubes 20. The conventional label application device is not adaptable for such method, further in case that the method is made under manual operation, the problem was that the operation was onerous and inefficient.
Further, the problem was taken into consideration that the label L applied to the article through the hollow tubes 20 may be come off from the article when the hollow tubes 20 are rubbed against other, or that a leaning of articles stacked may occur by the hollow tubes 20 as projection.
The present invention was developed with an object for resolving the above problems. An object of the present invention is to provide a RFID label application method for applying a label to an article, a RFID label application device thereof and a RFID label, wherein the RFID label is fixed with a RFID tag which is partially separable from the article without a special member. The influence on the RFID tag from the article, to which the RFID tag is applied, can be reduced. Further, efficient label application to the article can be made.